'Give, Instead of Take,' Says Psychologist
Dr. Adler Tells Audience Courage Is Basis of Success
Life gets Adler and Adler.
That's why more than [¿600?] persons all but fought to gain admission to the Arlington hotel ballroom Wednesday afternoon to be told they've got to give instead of take.
They deserted office, schoolroom and shop, they came from near and far to hear the famed psychologist, Dr. Alfred Adler, whom other scientists have called the "Confucius of the West," expound his theories on "The Science of Living" at the Binghamton Civic club's annual luncheon.
And they learned there's no need to affect fads and mannerisms in order to be "different." According to Dr. Adler, each individual is different from all others, each is a totality.
But—and here's the rub—each individual is also a "crystallized form of the original cell in the movement of evolution," consequently, each must develop himself to contribute and cooperate—to give, not take—for, being part of a whole, each must work for the interests of the whole rather than for the part.
To win, said Dr. Adler, you need only have courage, the courage to accept life as it is, to cope with it, and to solve its problems.
If you haven't this courage, your "style of life" is wrong and you become a failure because you are striving for personal superiority instead of superiority in cooperation, he added. Failures live in a fictitious world of their own making and, so, are always hit by the problems of life, with which they are not prepared to cope.
The individual's "style of life," Dr. Adler told his audience, is the creation of the child—the child creates and finishes the style early in life. While each child is born with a certain degree of social interest, this social interest must be developed if the child is to be a help to society instead of a nuisance.
"It is the duty of the educator," the speaker said, "to bring up the child with enough social interest so that he tries to create answers and solutions for the problems of the community and those of all mankind. We are right only if we are right for the welfare of all mankind, if we are right for eternity."
Parents, too, must learn to develop social interest in the child.
"The child who wants to boss others, to exploit them, to utilize them or to lean upon them," Dr. Adler said, "is lacking in social interest, his style of life is not worth while."
Greater activity is found among delinquents, the scientist said, because they are always seeking an outlet for some force within them that can be useful but is not. The opposite type, the passive child, who "is supposed to be a model," is equally doomed because neither has he sufficient social interest. So, too, with the child who gets his own way and with the neglected child.
"We cannot," Dr. Adler declared, "sacrifice persons who are socially interested for those who are not. To be useful means more than to be praised. Those persons who cooperate and contribute are contributing for eternity; their spirit is living, it never perishes."
Fuente: «'Give, Instead of Take,' Says Psychologist. Dr. Adler Tells Audience Courage Is Basis of Success», The Binghamton Press, Binghamton (N.Y.), jueves 17 de enero de 1935 (edición de tarde), p. 4, sin firma. Transcripción hecha sobre la imagen de la página en Fulton History (Binghamton NY Press Grayscale 1935 - 1473), cotejada con el OCR del archivo. El titular, que el OCR no recogía, se lee en la imagen. La cifra de asistentes es dudosa en la imagen («600» u «800»; el OCR lee «800»). Se omiten las demás piezas de la página (notas de sociedad, la breve «New Theft Excuse» de la UP y anuncios). Las palabras partidas a final de línea se unen.